The Select Committee considered the
recommended approach to develop a sustainable future for
Staffordshire’s countryside estate, and the proposed
implementation plan and associated scheme of
delegation. They considered the
management solutions which had been explored, in line with the four
preferred delivery options previously agreed by Cabinet in October
2015, namely:

·
Retain in-house with a new operating model;

·
Transfer management externally;

·
A partnership of landowners/managers; and

·
Not-for-profit body or charitable body.

The County Council had undertaken a review of
its countryside estate in order to
address increasing challenges facing the service and to find a more
financially sustainable delivery model.
Early in this process it had been agreed by Cabinet that there
would be no sale of countryside estate sites, and that the review
would focus on the future management of these sites. Through the County Council’s Medium Term
Financial Strategy, Rural County was currently committed to
delivering further savings of £318,000 from its net operating
budget from 2019/20 through to 2020/21.

Members considered a detailed report on the
steps which had been taken in the review and the wide range of
options which had been explored. Based
on the outcomes of the options appraisal and considering how
options might work in combination across the estate, three
potential management proposals were identified:

Management Proposal
1 – Default Option

This approach would be to retain management of
the entire estate in-house under a revised operating
model. However, based on consideration
of the financial sustainability of the estate and the outcomes of
the appraisal, this option should include the following
measures:

a)
A revised operating model through restructure of the staff
unit;

b)
Development and investment in volunteering and community capacity
building;

c)
Exploration of external contractual arrangements to deliver some
maintenance operations where this proves cost effective;

d)
Development of income streams (e.g. car park charges at key sites,
visitor centres and cafes, more effective utilisation of buildings,
donations and philanthropy) and retention/ring-fencing of generated
income within the service to support maintenance and improvement of
sites, supporting future financial sustainability.

Based on the outcomes of the options
appraisal, this proposal would explore the transfer (a long-term
lease) of the country parks and major local sites to environmental
bodies as a preferred route. The first
step would be to run a detailed procurement exercise to determine
which sites have potential to transfer to established and suitably
skilled bodies and to determine whether this is
cost-effective. If a number of sites remain, the second step would be
to explore the potential viability and cost of establishing a
bespoke charitable body to manage the sites. Otherwise, remaining sites would be retained
in-house. Under this management
proposal, minor local sites, greenways and rights of way would be
retained in-house, and incorporate the sustainability measures
outlined in management proposal one above.

Members considered the content of the proposed
On-Street Car Parking Strategy, including the forward programme of
on-street pay and display spaces, prior to it being issued for
consultation and formally adopted.

They were informed that parking spaces were
needed to help local economies grow, but
providing too much parking could encourage car use and have an
adverse effect on the quality of life for people living in town
centres, the conditions for pedestrians, impact on traffic flow,
and cause accessibility issues. The
Committee had previously recognised the importance of effective
management of on-street parking through civil parking enforcement
and had requested that they be provided with the opportunity to
consider the proposed strategy. It was
underpinned by the following core principles:

·
A consistent approach to on and off-street parking;

·
A well-structured regime for the management (and charging) of
on-street parking;

·
Parking facilities, arrangements and charging structures that
reflected the needs of the individual towns (including free
parking); and

·
A charging structure that reflected the varying demands of all the
users of the service.

Members questioned how businesses would be
involved in the strategy. They were
informed that initially the consultation process would involve
District and Borough Councils, the Staffordshire Association of
Town and Parish Councils, and businesses at a strategic level but
would then be aimed at a local level at the implementation
stage. Members suggested that Chambers
of Trade and Railway Stations should be added to the list of
proposed consultees. They stressed the
importance of the consultation being all-encompassing and involving
local communities, local residents and
local businesses and welcomed the reference to supporting town
centres. It was also suggested that
there should be liaison with other operators of car parks
in order to provide a co-ordinated
approach to manage the resource overall. The Cabinet Member confirmed that this
consultation would take place and that it was crucial to adopt the
right approach.

Members expressed concerns over parking on
footpaths and verges and were assured that these issues would be
included within the strategy. In
relation to enforcement, a member commented that it would be
helpful to give the Police and PCSOs the power to move vehicles
which were causing an obstruction. They
queried whether additional staff would need to be employed to
manage additional car parking spaces.
Officers responded that Pay and Display parking was easier to
enforce and would use the same enforcement resource but in a
different way.

It was queried how a balance was struck
between encouraging more vehicles into town centres and the impact
that this would have on air quality and it was suggested that it
would be helpful to include an environmental group in the
consultation exercise. Officers
responded that the increase in parking spaces involved fairly small numbers which would create a marginal
disadvantage to air quality. In
conclusion, a member commented that there was clearly a link
between the availability of convenient parking and high streets
which were thriving, and the importance of supporting these.

The Committee considered details of the new
governance structure and operating model of the Staffordshire Safer
Roads Partnership (SSRP). Members also
received details of a wide range of initiatives used to promote
road safety across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent with reference
to the four Es: education, engagement, engineering and enforcement,
which supported a wider culture change that would see excessive
speed and inconsiderate behaviour on roads as socially
unacceptable.

As part of the new governance arrangements
implemented in 2016 two boards were established:

·
The Strategic Board, which sets the strategic direction of the
Partnership and, working with recommendations from the Operational
Board, takes ultimate responsibility for key financial decision and
scrutiny. Membership includes senior
political representatives from the main Partner organisations.

·
The Operational Board reviews current local issues across the whole
spectrum of road safety to inform recommendations submitted to the
Strategic Board.

The Chairman commented that he welcomed the
work of the Partnership and acknowledged that it had been very
successful. However, he expressed
concern over its visibility and lack of public
scrutiny. In examining the governance
model, accounts and budget it was evident that it was a
self-funding organisation. He queried where the funding came from
and commented that if this was predominantly from educational
course referrals it was potentially a concern that it was a
business model dependent on people being caught
speeding. Officers responded that
enforcement activity was not driven by a desire to create income,
and that enforcement was managed carefully and
proportionately. The Chairman commented
that it would be helpful to have a level of transparency, assurance
and understanding for the public that cameras and mobile cameras
were put in places of concern around safety, rather than the focus
being on income generation. Officers
confirmed that the location of cameras was based upon collision
data and in response to concerns raised by the
community. It was suggested that, in
the genuine interest of safety, the locations of cameras could be
advertised. In relation to a query
about cameras being on or off, officers confirmed that there were
periodic reviews on collision statistics and cameras would be
activated in areas of recent collisions.

In considering data on collisions it was noted
that this information covered the whole of the County and it was
suggested that it would be useful to know variations and blackspots
for specific areas. It was also queried
whether there would be a focus on unclassified roads for the
future. Queries were also raised about
the issue of cyclist using pavements and HGVs speeding at
night. Officers pointed out that areas
were continually emerging as data was collected and
analysed.

In relation to the Staffordshire’s Road
Safety Grant fund which was launched in 2017 a member queried
whether action had been taken to promote this. The Cabinet Member undertook to send information
on this to members. In response to
concerns raised about the lack of transparency and openness on the
SSRP website, for example that it contained no information on the
governance structure ...
view the full minutes text for item 38.

The Select Committee received a copy of their
Work Programme for 2018/19. They noted
that the item on Post 18 Education Provision would be considered at
their meeting on 25 April 2019, and that an additional item,
Community Learning Annual Self-Assessment and 2019-2023 Strategy
and Priorities, would also be brought to that meeting.

RESOLVED – That the
above additions/amendments to the Work Programme 2018/19 be
agreed.

40.

Exclusion of the Public

The Chairman to move:-

“That the public be excluded from the
meeting for the following items of business which involve the
likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in the
paragraphs of Schedule 12A (as amended) of the Local Government Act
1972 indicated below”.

Part Two

(All reports in this section are exempt)

nil

Minutes:

RESOLVED – That the
public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of
business which involve the likely disclosure of exempt information
as defined in the paragraphs of Schedule 12A (as amended) of the
Local Government Act 1972 indicated below.